Modifying Photo and Photo Collection Properties

Photo data can be viewed and modified in the photo collection property sheet and photo list. Information displayed in the property sheet refers to the collection that is currently selected in the collection list, while information in the photo list is specific to each photo.

Information about the photo collections and photos (e.g., coordinate system, sensor width, focal length, photo position information) is generally read from a loaded Excel or XML file that includes this information. These parameters can then be adjusted in the collection property sheet and photo list.

To display and modify photo collection properties:

1. In the Project Tree, select the collection, and click the Properties tab.

2. In the collection property sheet, modify the property value as required. See “Collection Property Sheet” in this chapter for more information.

To display and modify photo properties:

1. In the Project Tree, select the collection, and click the Photo List tab.

2. In the Photos list, select the required photos, and modify their properties as required. See "Photo List" in this chapter for information.

Note: You can also search the list for the required photos. See “Selecting Items Using the Item List” in the “Basic Concepts” chapter for information.

Collection Property Sheet

A picture containing graphical user interface Description automatically generated

Property	Description
Collection
Name	Name of the collection in the Project Tree.
Calculate Camera Parameters	Method of calculating the camera’s intrinsic parameters. § Entire collection – Calculate the AT so that the camera intrinsic properties are the same for all photos in the collection. § Per photo – Calculate the camera intrinsics individually for each photo in the collection. Note: Parameters should be calculated per photo when not all of a collection’s photos were taken by the same physical camera with identical focal length and principal point.
Coordinate System	Coordinate system of the collection. Click Select to set a different coordinate system. See “Coordinate System” in the “Basic Concepts” chapter for more information.
Ignore Orientation	Ignore the orientation value.
Orientation Method	Select which system to use to set orientation: OPK (Omega, Phi, Kappa) or YPR (Yaw, Pitch, and Roll). This selection determines which fields are displayed in the Advanced Position section of the property sheet.
Camera
Focal Length Normalization	Camera properties used to set the focal length. Select one of the following options: § Focal length and sensor width § Focal length and pixel size § Focal length 35
Sensor Width	Size of the camera sensor in millimeters.
Pixel Size	Size of a physical pixel on the camera sensor in millimeters.
Focal Length	Focal length in millimeters.
Focal Length 35	Equivalent focal length in millimeters for a 35 mm film camera.
Principal Point Reference	Origin and units of the principal point. Select either: § Top left in pixels – Positive x-direction is to the right and positive y-direction is downwards. § Top left in mm – Positive x-direction is to the right and positive y-direction is downwards. § Center in pixels – Positive x-direction is to the right and positive y-direction is upwards. § Center in mm – Positive x-direction is to the right and positive y-direction is upwards.
Principal Point X	Principal point X value in pixels or mm according to principal point reference.
Principal Point Y	Principal point Y value in pixels or mm according to principal point reference.
Width	Width of photo in pixels.
Height	Height of photo in pixels.
Gamma	Brightness of the photo’s colors.
Effective Range	Maximum distance from the camera position for which photo information is considered valid for the aerotriangulation.
Calculated Effective Range	Whenever the Effective Range parameter value is not provided, PhotoMesh calculates the maximum distance from the camera for which photo information is considered valid for the aerotriangulation, and then displays and uses this value.
Crop Area	Percentage of the photo to use in the project. Blurry or obstructed areas on the edges of a photo will be cropped based on this property value.
Use in Textured Model	Select the check box to include this collection in the textured model.
Use in Orthophoto	Select the check box to include this collection in the orthophoto.
Use in Point Cloud	Select the check box to include this collection in the point cloud output.
Bands – Hyperspectral Hyperspectral bands in the collection’s photos. These bands can be used in texturing the 3D model and in generating the orthophoto. See “Setting Reconstruction Parameters” and “Setting Output Formats” in the “Building” chapter. Note: The band information is retrieved from the collection information in the photo list Excel or XML, the collectionProperties XML, or from the first photo in the collection. See “Loading an Excel or ContextCapture XML Photo List File” and “Loading Photo Files from Disk” in the “Photo Management” chapter. You can manually set the value for each band in the property sheet.
1	Select the first band.
2	Select the second band.
3	Select the third band.
Camera Distortion (Optional) Radial and tangential distortion calculated using the Brown-Conrady model. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distortion_(optics)#Software_correction for more information.
K1	Defines the 1^st radial distortion coefficient.
K2	Defines the 2^nd radial distortion coefficient.
K3	Defines the 3^rd radial distortion coefficient.
P1	Defines the 1^st tangential distortion coefficient.
P2	Defines the 2^nd tangential distortion coefficient.
Advanced Position (Either OPK or YPR offset and flip values will be displayed, depending on your selection above for Orientation Method)
Altitude Offset	Offset from the current altitude value.
Omega Offset	Offset along the Omega axis in degrees.
Phi Offset	Offset along the Phi axis in degrees.
Kappa Offset	Offset along the Kappa axis in degrees.
Flip Omega	Flips the Omega axis.
Flip Phi	Flips the Phi axis.
Flip Kappa	Flips the Kappa axis.
Yaw Offset	Offset along the Yaw axis in degrees.
Pitch Offset	Offset along the Pitch axis in degrees.
Roll Offset	Offset along the Roll axis in degrees.
Flip Yaw	Flips the Yaw axis.
Flip Pitch	Flips the Pitch axis.
Flip Roll	Flips the Roll axis.
Secondary Yaw Rotation	Additional rotation along the Yaw axis in degrees, that is performed in YPR order after the photos' OPK or YPR orientation and offsets were applied.
Secondary Pitch Rotation	Additional rotation along the Pitch axis in degrees, that is performed in YPR order after the photos' OPK or YPR orientation and offsets were applied.
Secondary Roll Rotation	Additional rotation along the Roll axis in degrees, that is performed in YPR order after the photos' OPK or YPR orientation and offsets were applied.

Photos List

In the Photos list, you can view and set photo properties, as well as set photo visibility and inclusion in the project. When calculated camera positions are displayed, you can also view calculated property information for a selected photo. See “About the Item List” in the “Using the Project Tree and Item List” chapter for information on working with the Photos list.

Graphical user interface, application, table, Excel Description automatically generated

Photo List

To open the Photos list:

§ In the Project Tree, select a Photos collection. The Photos list lists all the photo files in the collection, with the following information/options:

Property	Description
Selection	Select the photos on which to perform an action, e.g., create tie point, show/hide camera symbol, exclude, delete.
Collection	Name of the photo collection (Read-only).
Name	Name of the photo.
Visible	Select the check box to show the photo in the 3D Window.
Exclude	Select the check box to exclude the photo from the project. This option is not available in Review mode.
Project Original	Select the check box to project the photo on the terrain in its original camera position. A photo can be projected on the terrain to see if it fits the terrain imagery or to better understand the position of the photo. Only photos that have positioning (XY coordinates and altitude) and orientation (Omega, Phi, and Kappa) information can be projected. Note: Projecting multiple photos simultaneously can take several minutes.
X	East-west coordinate of the camera. (Required)
Y	North-south coordinate of the camera. (Required)
Altitude	Altitude of the camera in meters. (Required)
Omega	Omega Euler angle in degrees.
Phi	Phi Euler angle in degrees.
Kappa	Kappa Euler angle in degrees.
Yaw	Direction angle of the camera along the vertical axis relative to north.
Pitch	Tilt angle of the camera along its lateral axis relative to the horizon.
Roll	Roll angle of the camera along its longitudinal (front-to-back) axis.
Path	Full path of the photo.
K1	Defines the 1^st radial distortion coefficient.
K2	Defines the 2^nd radial distortion coefficient.
K3	Defines the 3^rd radial distortion coefficient.
P1	Defines the 1^st tangential distortion coefficient.
P2	Defines the 2^nd tangential distortion coefficient.
Calculated Cameral Position Information (Additional columns) Note: If you want to view calculated information for a selected photo, click the Calculated button on the Tile tab.
Project Calculated	Select the check box to project the photo on the terrain in its calculated camera position.
Median Error	Median of the triangulation errors of all the features in the photo. The triangulation error is the distance, in pixels, for each of the features in the photo, between the automatically identified feature and its projected triangulation position.
X Calculated	Calculated east-west coordinate of the camera.
Y Calculated	Calculated north-south coordinate of the camera.
Altitude Calculated	Calculated altitude of the camera in meters.
Omega Calculated	Calculated Omega Euler angle in degrees.
Phi Calculated	Calculated Phi Euler angle in degrees.
Kappa Calculated	Calculated Kappa Euler angle in degrees.
K1 Calculated	Calculated 1^st radial distortion coefficient.
K2 Calculated	Calculated 2^nd radial distortion coefficient.
K3 Calculated	Calculated 3^rd radial distortion coefficient.
P1 Calculated	Calculated 1^st tangential distortion coefficient.
P2 Calculated	Calculated 2^nd tangential distortion coefficient.